The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-09-21
DR.. JEKYLL--MR. HYDE
How Mr.. Mansfslds Nsw Damitgstion Ap-
peartd to 5 Sentinel Critic.
Other New Plays in New York-An Episode
OF the Recent Medical Con-
gress-H. S. Ives.
special New YORK Letter.)


the Madison Square Tneater on Monday
night, he has something more worthy OF
his great talents than anything he has yet
done, except the Baron, in "a Partisan
Romsnce." Mr.. Mansfield occasionally
plays the latter piece for brief seasons, but
he has been constrained to practically
abandon that great piece of work for such
trihes as "Prince Karl" and Monsieur"
Unfortunately the Baron did not pay, and
prince Karl' and Monsieur" were pot
boilers by design and did pay. The ques-
tion of pecuniary success must enter
largely into any theatrical production, and
ii is a question yet whether the fine work
which Mr.. Mansfield does in his new piece
will pay him any better
than did that in which he first leaped
into fame as great delineator
Of eccentric character. The story OF 'Dr.
Jekyll" did not lend itself naturally to
dramatization; on the contrary it had but
one dramatic element in it, and that
seemed insurmountable. To be effective
the changes from DR.. Jekyll to Mr.. Hyde
and vice verss must be made in sight of the
audience, and as the characters are de-
scribed in the story, this was physical
inpossibility. Mr.. Mansfield seems to
have invented a means of overcoming this
obstacle, but il is at some sacrifice of DR..
JekyH as we know him in the original, a
genial, jovial man OF so. The necessity of
making the change in sight of the audience
compelled Mr.. Mansfield to make him q
younger man (Which permitted q love
episode to be naturally intro
duced) and more somb2r char
acter. This was recognized to be
necessary and admissible; but the author
erred in not making his surroundings light
and pleasing-in contrast to the doctor
himself. Instead, the other characters are
almost as somber as he is. There are no
women in the story, except housekeeper,
and she is repulsive. So others had to be
invented. One is not young or amiable;
the other is altogether too sad, and the one
who is retained is only less repulsive than
Hyde himself. Practically there are no
other inventions introduced except an
imaginary ghost, and he DOESN'T add any
light nor lovelinees to tue play. The whole
is morose and sad, and the effects pro.
duced are upon the nerves and the minds
OF the audiences; the heart is never
touched ones. The interest is intense to
such degree as to be painful This in,
tensity is never relaxed; and if it were not
for the thoughts excited over the powerful
acting of Mr.. Mansfield and the dsep
| psychological meaning Of the dual char
| acters, criticism of this really magnificent
performance OF Mr.. Maps6eld would be
stale at this writing, aud further Will not
sfflict readers.
l find, however, there IS soma curiosity
as to the success OF his efforts at changing
his appearance before the audieu &c. He
does this twice; the first time changing
| from the hideous Hyde to the benign, sad
| looking DR.. Jekyl; the other, in the fiual
| scene from DR.. Jekyn to Mr.. Hyde. The
first is the most difficult, and yet il is the
| more deliberately done of the two. As
| HYDE Mr.. Mansfield wears black wig, thu
| long locks of which fall over his cheeks
and partly conceal his face. His cheeks
| are bIackened to make them look sunken.
| His lower lip is protruded and Redeemed.
His coat is fastened at the top by single
| button. As he mixes the potion he crouches
before fire. whose light shines full in his
face, but one hand, as he pours out the
LIQUID, conceals bis face, while with the
other be rubs off the red on his lips aud the
smut on his cheeks. During long speech
which follows he conceals these sights
changes in his face by bending rather low
as he speaks He drinks the potion in this
clouchipg attitude and retains it a moment
after, while In the commissions which pre-.
cede the change. He runs his hands over
his cheek, ADD in doing so whitens them.
| His prouuding lip is Withdrawn. He
| deity buttons up his coat in full, and rs
be rises 10 an erect position the looje gar.
ments appear to fill out, but really 6t
more closely, and at the instant that he
stands perfectly erect he throws back the
lorg locks from his face and stands com.
| pleteiy metamorphOsed INTO the DIR. Jekyll
he had made familiar 10 the first act. The
second change from DR.. Jekyll to Mr..
Hy de is done at the rear of the stage and
is far less difficult, nor is it 50 effective,
though the death scene is intensely i'm
pressive.
Three other plays divided for the first
time with that of Mr.. Mansfield the atten-
ton of the New York public on Monday
night but "Dr. Jekyll and Mr.. Hyde
may be said to be the only one genuinely
successful. 1.-THE Arabian Nights" is not
new. though never before done here; and,
though trivial, 1t is likely to have long
run. "a Hole in the Ground is one OF
those terrible affections of Mr.. G. II. Hoyt,
now familiar to those who go TO the
theater only to laugh at nonsense without
wit. Mrs Bowers attempted TO impose g
new version of that Parlsian nightmare
Serge Parrine" on this patient public
but they would not have it. John A
Msckay has returned to the Bijou-why
nobody seems to KNOWN piece called
"Circus in Town" 1t is miserable rub.
bish, badly acted by an alleged comic man
who comes mighty near to being for
lorn sort Of crushed trsgedian:
II I'D tDC dluublC NCIbtOn VI 0As SChy IA
and Mr.. hyde one OF the characters DR.
Langon, speaks of Jekylls experiments as
''unprofessional," and Jekyll replies
with that reproach you try to strange
science and retard discovery" or words 10
that effect An episode in the secret his
tory of the late International Medical Con
gress, at Wsshin gton, illustrates the FACT
| that this prejudice against advancement
in the sciences still exists in the medical
profession. am happy to say that in this
instance the assembled congress was super
Ter in intelligence to the man who tried to
influence it, although his name was once
one to whom all surgeons paid respect.
mentioned in one of my letters that DR.
Milton Jotiah Roberts, of this city, was to
read letter on the subject OF amputatior
of limbs, and 10 display q curious inven
ton of his for quickly cutting them of
A synopsis OF the paper was submitted tC
the proper officers, accepted, and the ar
rangements made for the display OF the
instrument. But DR.. Roberts, on reach
ing Washington, found that there was q
serious obstacle in the way. The title oil
the paper on "The Electro .Osteotome and
its use in Surgery" was not to be found
on the printed programme, and
nobody was authorized to let him
set up the eiectro-osteotome in the hal
where the Congress was to meet. Inquiry
finally elicttd that q communication had
| been received by the executive committed
| M, aoairof rorrnfftiuO nr r m